The term "lawful intercept" describes the process by which law enforcement agencies conduct electronic surveillance of circuit and packet-mode communications as authorized by judicial or administrative order. Countries throughout the world have adopted legislative and regulatory requirements for providers of public and private communication services (service providers) to design and implement their networks to support authorized electronic surveillance explicitly. International standards organizations have also developed standards to guide service providers and manufacturers in specific lawful intercept capabilities.

Published in 2004 by the IETF, an informational RFC discussing how lawful intercept could be accomplished in service provider IP networks has been influential in the development of subsequent global standards.